SkyTab POS Offline Payments Overview

Description: Learn about offline processing on your SkyTab POS below. 

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Visit the SkyTab POS Offline Payments and Internet Connection FAQs for additional information.

What is Offline Processing?

Offline processing allows you to continue accepting payments when your internet connection is down or cannot reach the payment gateway. Transactions initiated during this period are stored on the device until the connection is re-established, at which point they are processed for authorization.

• Offline processing can occur due to service provider outages, hardware failures, or issues upstream in the payment processing flow (e.g., at the gateway level).
• Individual devices or stations can go offline while others may remain connected.

Going Offline: What happens?

• When the POS loses internet connection, it automatically switches to Offline Mode after a failed payment authorization attempt.
• A device in Offline Mode is indicated by a card icon with a line through it . in the upper right corner where the Notification Center is located.
• Once the system processes an offline transaction, it will continue in Offline Mode for the next 30 minutes to avoid repeated connection failures.
  Note: You can bring the device back online within 30 minutes if the connection is restored. Select Go Online in the Payments section of the Notification Center's Operational Status window.
  

During Offline Mode, the following features are unavailable:

• Pre-Authorizations
• Refunds
• Lighthouse Data Syncing: Lighthouse may show pending transactions as “approved” even though they are awaiting final authorization.

Handling Pending Transactions

When your POS reconnects to the internet:

• The system will automatically process pending transactions one at a time, sending a transaction every two minutes until the queue is cleared.
• If a transaction cannot be authorized (e.g., insufficient funds), it will require manual intervention.

Note: Allow time for pending transactions to process. A general rule is to allow 1 hour per 30 pending transactions for the queue to fully clear. Do not clear data on terminals or devices that have pending transactions. 

Batch Processing and Report Discrepancies

During an outage, batch processing may be affected if payments have not yet been authorized before the batch time. Payments from offline mode may appear in Lighthouse reports even though they haven’t been fully authorized, potentially leading to discrepancies in daily reports.